Most children have built forts that are places specifically for themselves in which to play. These structures, in their simplest form, are made of household furniture with cloth coverings such as blankets and sheets draped over the furniture to create the enclosure. More elaborate structures are constructed of building materials and may be constructed to resemble small homes with foundations on the ground or in some cases in living trees. Similar structures, made of collapsible panels, are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,313,747 and 5,706,613. Another structural configuration is that of an igloo is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,715,854. In addition, structures made of inflatable elements have also been disclosed. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,145,440 a cabin is constructed of inflatable interlocking simulated logs. Similarly U.S. Pat. No. 5,273,477 describes inflatable blocks with interlocking tongue and groove that may be stacked to create a structure.
Another structure described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,970,661 describes and inflatable tent constructed of air permeable fabric with a shroud on one end to receive a household fan and a plurality of anchor weights along the perimeter edge that may be adjusted to create different shaped configurations of the tent. These weights are of sufficient weight to secure the structure on a flat surface while maintaining the desired configuration of the structure. They are inserted into cylindrical pockets formed at the free edges of the middle and side panels. Children enter and exit the structure by lifting an edge and climbing under it. Unfortunately, this invention can be difficult for a child to enter or exit depending on the location of the weights, potential shifting of the weights in their cylindrical pockets or relocation of the weights will change the desired shape of the structure and, as a whole, the inflated structure cannot be moved or relocated easily on a flat surface when in use without moving each of the weights or deflating the structure.
Consequently, there is a need for a inflatable structure that is easily entered from all locations along the perimeter edge of the structure, that maintains its desired shape and can be easily moved or rotated on a flat surface easily when fully inflated.
The forgoing examples of related art and limitation related therewith are intended to be illustrative and not exclusive, and they do not imply any limitations on the invention described and claimed herein. Various limitations of the related art will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading and understanding of the specification below and the accompanying drawings.